State v. Utley

• Decision Date: 14 April 1943
• Docket Number: 361.
• Citation: 25 S.E.2d 195,223 N.C. 39
• Parties: STATE v. UTLEY.
• Court: North Carolina Supreme Court

25 S.E.2d 195

223 N.C. 39

STATE v. UTLEY.

No. 361.

Supreme Court of North Carolina

April 14, 1943

[Copyrighted Material Omitted]

Criminal prosecution upon two indictments, charging defendant in No 731 with murder of Cora Lee Utley and in No. 732 with murder of J.T. Collins, consolidated by consent for purpose of trial and tried together.SeeState v. Grass, N.C.,25 S.E.2d 193, at this term.

Upon the trial below the State offered evidence tending to show that on morning of July 24, at time homicide in question occurred, "a picking crew", composed of Cora Lee Utley, age 24 years, wife of defendant, J.T. Collins, age 21 years, brother of Cora Lee Utley, Willa Meta Pugh, age 18 years, Elco Covington, who married niece of Cora Lee Utley and perhaps others, under C.A. Campbell as foreman, were picking peaches at the Montgomery Orchard; that defendant armed with a butcher knife, the blade of which was 12 to 14 inches long, came into the orchard and approached "the crowd"; that J.T. Collins asked defendant if he wanted a job, to which defendant replied, "No, I believe not", "No", or "No, there isn't enough of them for me", as variously stated by witnesses, and that defendant immediately assaulted J.T. Collins, and then Cora Lee Utley, inflicting wounds from which they died.

Elco Covington, as witness for the State, described the occurrence in this manner: "I saw James Utley come down one of the peach rows toward where the crowd was picking.Cora Lee was picking and J.T. and the other girl was picking another row above them.J.T. moved up to the other side and asked James Utley if he wanted a job.Utley said 'No, I believe not'.Then J.T. moved to another tree.James, the defendant, walked from the tree he was at and did like that and walked by J.T. like he was going to back up, and when he did he grabbed J.T. in the back of his belt and stabbed J.T. in the side with a butcher knife *** in the right side, and if J.T. was doing anything or saying anything, I did not hear it.*** J.T. went across the orchard.I saw him catch the pick-up.He was bleeding in the side.I did not see him any more.James pulled around the tree and went to his wife, Cora Lee.Cora Lee ran to Mr. Campbell, and he ran after her.She tripped and fell, and when she did, I seen James stab her through her arm with a butcher knife.He ran 12 or 15 feet after Cora Lee.*** I next saw her standing up and James had walked off and she said he had killed her and fell back on the peach tree ***.I heard him (defendant) ask Mr. Alex Campbell if she was dead and he told him Yes.He said if she wasn't he was going to finish her.Mr. Alex caught him on the shoulder and told him not to do that he had done enough.Cora Lee did not strike at the prisoner at the time he stabbed her, and had no weapon in her hand, and I did not see any weapon in J.T. Collins'hand.Cora Lee died under the peach tree in about twelve minutes after she was stabbed ***.James made no effort to render any assistance after he stabbed her ***.I was about 18 feet away when James caught J.T. and about 12 feet when he caught Cora Lee ***.I did not see J.T. pull a knife from his pocket and did not see James get cut on the thumb."

Willa Meta Pugh, also witness for State, gives this version: "I was in the orchard and saw James when he walked in the field.He stood in the row opposite the tree where we were picking, and J.T. asked him if he wanted a job, and James said No.When J.T. turned his back James grabbed him and stabbed him one time.He pulled the knife out of Collins and ran over to where his wife was; then he chased her around the tree and she fell, or he knocked her down, and then he stabbed her five or six times while she was on the ground.She did not say anything ***.James did not say anything after he stabbed his wife; he left and went down behind the pick-up.He came back after she fell and wanted to know whether she was dead or not.He asked Mr. Campbell *** said if she wasn't he was going to finish her.Cora Lee was not quite dead *** she died a few minutes later.J.T. Collins left after he was stabbed ***.Collins did not attempt to do anything to James, and I did not see Collins have any weapon.When James stabbed his wife *** she had no weapon and I heard him say nothing prior to time he stabbed her ***.I was standing between J.T. and Cora Lee and saw James when he struck at J.T. J.T. had nothing in his hand; I could have seen it if he had had one."

C.A. Campbell, also witness for State, gave this narrative of the occurrence: "I saw James walking in the field ***.James said 'You are picking peaches?'I said 'Yes'.He said, 'They are right pretty'.I said 'Yes'.He said 'What kind art they?'I said, 'Elbertas'.I was very close to him at the time.Some one asked him if he did not want a job.He said, 'No, there isn't enough of them for me'.Cora Lee came running around me and James ran against me running.I said, 'Here, don't do that, don't do that'.She ran in front of me and stumbled and fell face foremost.She rolled over right quick and he ran and dropped down on her with his knee on her and stabbed her one time through the right arm, and then *** I saw him stab her five times.J.T. ran around there and grabbed up a peach basket with about a gallon of peaches and hit James with it, and James jumped up and said, 'I will finish you'.They ran out 18 feet away and J.T. grabbed a peach limb off a dead peach tree and struck at James.At this time my son-in-law came by on a pick-up and J.T. caught the back end and went off.James ran the pick-up down the field 35 or 40 yards and then he turned around and came walking back to where I was standing.'Cap, I am sorry I done it, but I had to do it', he said, 'Those damn Collins' have been running over me for the last ten years'.I said, 'James, you have done the wrong thing'.He said, 'Do you know where I can get the law?'I said, 'They will be here in a few minutes'.He said, 'I will walk on down and wait for them'.He said, 'If she ain't dead, I will finish her'.I said, 'James you have done plenty'.*** I didn't see what occurred between J.T. and James before he got to his wife.I had my back to them, and I did not hear anything at all except what James said to me ***.James was arrested about 500 yards from where the killing took place.So far as I know he made no effort to get away."

Sheriff Bruton, who arrested defendant, described the wounds on the body of Cora Lee Utley as "one at the shoulder, three cuts in the right arm, one right above the hip, two stabs in the back a little to the right of the back bone that were to the hollow *** seven *** altogether", and those on the body of J.T. Collins, as "one cut across the stomach about 6 inches long that went to the hollow"; and "a stab wound on the right side of the stomach; it went to the heart.They appeared to have been made with a knife."

On the other hand, defendant, after testifying that he married Cora Lee Collins in 1934, that he had been assaulted and threatened by J.T. Collins on several occasions; and that on the night before the homicide he upbraided his wife for her conduct with a man, whom he saw that night but did not know related this story of happenings on the night before and at the time of the homicide: "I shaved and went back to my wife's father's house.They were all sitting on the porch.When I sat down on the porch, J.T. got up and went through the house and asked what was that I put in the water bucket.I told him I hadn't been in the house.J.T. had a double-barrel gun and I told him I had not been in the house.I was pleading for my life, and his sister told him that I had not been in the house and was pleading for my life.His sister took it away from him and later on that night they went to bed.I stayed on the porch until about 3 o'clock.J.T. took the gun in the room with him and slept with it across his bed.I was frightened and did not sleep.The next morning my wife asked me to come to the peach farm where she was so that we might talk this thing over, and the next morning I went to the peach orchard where they were.I admit being afraid of J.T. I went there with the intention of apologizing to J.T. and to get my wife so that we could live together.I didn't go there with the intention to kill or hurt anybody.I had never had that in mind **.When I got to the farm J.T. asked me if I wanted a job.I told him there was not enough to pick.I said: 'J.T., I come to apologize to you about drawing a gun on me'.He said, 'Tonight you won't only get it drawn on you, you will get shot'.I was afraid of him, to tell you the truth about it.I grabbed him with this hand (indicating).He ran his right hand in his pocket and made a swipe at my neck with a knife.I grabbed his hand and he split my finger ***.When he cut me on the finger, I cut him.When I looked around, my wife was coming at me with a peach bag drawing back like that (indicating).I do not know whether she meant to hit me or not.At that time I guess I was a little madder than I should have been.I don't know how many times I cut her,--and then I went on down the road and sat down.I went *** and got a cloth and wrapped my thumb up."Then on cross-examination, defendant continued: "I have been cooking *** in Greensboro ***.I came back with the intention to take my wife.Me and my wife had a big argument the night before and I slept across the bed.She left the house about 8 o'clock and I left *** about 10 o'clock.She didn't strike me with anything, but when I turned around, she was in arm's reach with a peach bag drawed back ***.I got the knife on the porch at Robert Collins' (father of Cora Lee, at whose home he had spent the night) ***.I was not drinking.I am right-handed and...